Question

A pilot is flying an airplane. Due to strong winds, the pilot decides to fly 4,000 feet lower to avoid excessive turbulence. It takes the pilot 3.5 minutes to make this adjustment. Interpret the quotient to describe the rate of change in the plane’s altitude. Give your answer to the nearest hundredth, and remember the plane is descending.(1 point)

Answer 1

To find the rate of change in the plane’s altitude, we can calculate the quotient of the total altitude change and the time it took to change that altitude.

The plane descends 4,000 feet in 3.5 minutes. To find the rate of descent in feet per minute, we can use the following formula:

\[ \text{Rate of descent} = \frac{\text{Change in altitude}}{\text{Time}} = \frac{4,000 \text{ feet}}{3.5 \text{ minutes}} \]

Now, doing the calculation:

\[ \text{Rate of descent} = \frac{4000}{3.5} \approx 1142.8571 \text{ feet per minute} \]

Rounding this to the nearest hundredth gives us:

\[ \text{Rate of descent} \approx 1142.86 \text{ feet per minute} \]

Since the plane is descending, we can state the final answer as:

The rate of change in the plane's altitude is approximately -1142.86 feet per minute (indicating a descent).